Month: September 2009

A common misperception is that all green jobs are in the energy industry or all energy jobs are green. But this is not the case. It is true that the most common place to find a green job is in renewable energy generation or other energy-related industries, but energy careers can only truly be considered “green” if they primarily engage in the following activities:

Your current job search might be one of the most important activities of your life. But it doesn’t have to be complicated. If you’re not getting desired results from your job search tasks, a review of the basics could help steer you in the right direction.

There may be some skeptics out there, but the data is clear: women, on average, still earn less than men. Sex differences in education, experience, and career choices can explain some of the gap, but not all of it. For example, take just college graduates who work full-time. Men’s median weekly wages are $1,243, while women’s are $932 for women (see this chart for the data). And this graphic (based on data from the 2007 Current Population Survey) shows that women earn less even when they work in the same occupation as men. Here in Minnesota, women make about 80 cents for every dollar men earn. (That’s an unadjusted figure that doesn’t take into account sex differences in education, experience, career choices, etc.)

The pay gap has shrunk significantly over the past 30 years. Still, these days even a small pay gap has big implications for families. For the first time ever, women are on the verge of outnumbering men in the labor force. And while it’s not new for women to work, what is new is that many women are finding themselves in the role of breadwinner. Men have been much more likely than women to lose their jobs during this recession (especially here in Minnesota).

If you’re a female (or male) job seeker, here are some tips to help you get the highest salary you can.

You can select your current or previous occupation and then see which other career fields are the closest matches based on skill, knowledge, and ability requirements. You can even compare your current and prospective occupations to see where your skill gaps might be and where you might need additional training to qualify.

Have you heard the buzz about “personal branding?” Career advisors are talking about it because job seekers’ awareness of their own personal brand impacts the success of their job hunt. Thinking that you don’t have a personal brand might mean that you do have one, and it could be hurting you.

Have you heard the buzz about “personal branding?” Career advisors are talking about it because job seekers’ awareness of their own personal brand impacts the success of their job hunt. Thinking that you don’t have a personal brand might mean that you do have one, and it could be hurting you.